


The Wizard Mix-Up

by SchylerTheBookworm



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/F, F/M, Love Triangle, M/M, Self-Harm
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-09
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-08 21:47:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 9,011
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27473737
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SchylerTheBookworm/pseuds/SchylerTheBookworm
Summary: After the war, former enemies find friendship among them, but this new situation stirs up some other feelings as well. What will Draco Malfoy do when he finds himself in an unexpected love triangle? Will he choose the golden boy? Or the smartest witch of her age?CONTAINS SELF-HARM SCENES
Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter, Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy
Comments: 2
Kudos: 5





	1. Home

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! I'm Schyler and this is my very first Fan Fiction, I will try to do my best. If you find any mistakes in my writing or in the story itself please let me know so I can correct it and make the book better. Thank you in advance for reading my book and I really hope you like it. :)  
> (New chapter every Monday)  
> All characters belong to J.K Rowling, I only own the plot ;)  
> This is my Tumblr, if you want to contact me.

Voldemort? Killed  
The war? Over

All of the survivors were heading back home; those who were lucky enough to see their loved ones still alive, left with just slight traumas and bad memories; those who didn't share this luck left also with their corresponding bodies and a greater feeling of grief. This was the case of the Weasley family, including the honorary members Harry and Hermione, all mourning over Fred, who was now being carried away inside a wooden coffin to The Burrow, where a ceremony in his honor would take place, before meeting his final destination in the family graveyard.  
After about two months, everyone was starting to get back to life, the Golden Trio and Ginny went every few days to Hogwarts to help with the reconstruction, Arthur and Molly Weasley went back to their daily activities and even though George still stayed locked up in his room, he was starting to talk and eat a bit more, which was a relief for everyone.  
Everything had changed, and Harry and Ginny's relationship (which they had resumed only two months ago) had that very clear, so the golden boy decided it was time to have a little talk with his girlfriend.  
*Knock, Knock*  
-Come in- Answered Ginny softly from her place next to the window in her room.  
-Hey, how are you holding up?- Asked Harry  
-Fine I guess, how about you?-  
Harry stayed silent, staring out the window while he collected his thoughts.  
-There's something I need to talk to you about-  
-Oh?- Ginny turned to face him, already prepared for what she knew was coming.  
-Ginny, I don't think we should date anymore... It's just that, everything is so different now, and- Harry's speech was interrupted by the girl's finger in his lips.  
-I understand, I was thinking about it too actually, but I *sigh*... At least this didn't happen in a funeral like last time, heh, talk about bad timing-  
-Yeah, sorry about that...-  
-It's okay, things are not so bad anymore...-  
The two Gryffindors looked at each other and smiled.  
-Friends?- Asked Harry  
-Friends- Replied Ginny as she pulled him into a hug, both glad that there were no hard feelings.

Many miles away, Draco Malfoy watched through his own window how his father was being taken to Azkaban by some aurors; it had been decided by the Ministry that both his mother and himself had acted against their will and therefore were free to go, but Draco felt as if he were still trapped inside his own mind, the guilt eating him alive. He really wanted to stay strong for his mother, but as each day passed the weight of his past actions drowned him more and more. He was ashamed of the person he used to be and resented his father for raising him that way, but the true Draco had finally been released into the world and could see clearly the man who he really wanted to be, it was a shame that it had taken a whole war just to figure that out.  
Looking into the past, the blond Slytherin was able to identify very specific moments of his life where he had taken all the wrong choices and now regretted them deeply, knowing how different his life would be right now if only he had been a bit nicer, maybe he would have enough courage to help out at school or give his condolences to the Weasley family and the others, maybe he wouldn't feel so lonely. How would he face his former classmates in case he had to see them again? How could he show the Golden Trio how sorry he was for the person he used to be? How could he make up for his mistakes and clean his name? It's true that Draco had no choice when going into the Dark Lord's side, but his previous behavior showed nothing of it and Draco knew that. He would always be a filthy Death Eater in the eyes of everyone. The only ones who understood him were his best friends Pansy Parkinson and Blaise Zabini, who had seen in firsthand how his life had taken such horrible turns.  
Draco felt as if no one else would ever understand, and that thought made him feel extremely lonely; he was on the verge of tears when he realized that none of that needed to happen, he could move to another country and start over, maybe things wouldn't play out as badly and he could have a real life, maybe...  
This little ray of hope was quickly shattered as an owl tapped on his window and dropped a letter on his desk, making him break down with the sight of the purple wax seal in the envelope, the letter that would change his life, the letter inviting all of the students back to Hogwarts.


	2. The Letter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains mentions/actions of self-harm that could be triggering, don't get any ideas.

Draco stared at the envelope from the distance; he was sitting in his bed, hugging his legs and with tears running across his pale cheeks, his eyes turning a soft tone of red while his head was running through a thousand different scenarios a minute; he couldn't take it anymore, all these thoughts felt as if they were swelling and creating a pressure in his head. Draco felt as if he were a balloon and all the pressure was going to make him pop, but how does one take the air out of a balloon without popping it? One must simply open a hole in it, and since the knot in his neck was going nowhere, the Slytherin started having other ideas; he thought about the root of all his problems: his Dark Mark. After pulling his sleeves up, he eyed the fading ink in his arm and grabbed his wand, perhaps if he could get rid of it, a big weight would be taken off his chest.

  
-Diffindo- He said softly, pointing it at his arm and drawing a diagonal line across the Dark Mark, first from left to right and then switching the sides. He wasn't very sure about this, self-harm had always seem so weak to him, so his words were soft, letting his doubts show. Moments later, the skin separated enough to reveal a very thin red path, as thin as a paper cut, letting a tiny amount of blood scape. Draco was feeling confused at this point, he had expected to feel disgusted and weak, but it actually felt kind of nice, even if it did nothing to damage the Mark. It stung a little as the skin started swelling a bit around the cuts, but he liked it.

  
-That wasn't that bad- Thought Draco, the pain wasn't high but rather a pleasant little sting, from which he felt all the pressure coming out from. His eyes then caught the envelope again, but before he could think anything else, there was a knock at his door.  
-Just a moment!- Draco said loudly enough for the person to hear while he conjured a bandaged to cover up his new cut and lowered his sleeves, he took a quick look in the mirror to make sure his eyes weren't red anymore and went to open the door.

Back at The Burrow, Molly Weasley was summoning everyone to the living room, from where you could see two large owls carrying two different letters each. Because it was around the begging of July, everyone knew immediately what they were, and as the owls dropped off the letters, different emotions were heard in the small living room. Hermione let out a small gasp followed by a giggle, Ron let out a growl, Harry started muttering to himself and Ginny just sighed. Each one of them grabbed their correspondent letter, and while Ginny's was the same as every year with the exception of a few words about the war, the others were quite different:

Dear Students,  
We are terribly sorry for the tragic events all of you had to endure this past year, and offer our most sincere condolences to those who have suffered losses. However, because you were not able to finish your studies, the school has decided to open its doors for "eight years", who shall be required to report to the Great Hall upon arrival, the dates for which shall be duly advised.  
We will provide all the materials from the list of requirements attached herewith.  
We very much look forward to receiving you again as part of the honorary students of Hogwarts.  
Yours sincerely,  
Professor McGonagall (Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry)

-I can't believe it! After everything we've been through they still want us to return?!- Exclaimed Pansy clutching the letter next to her face as Draco opened the door.  
-It's not that bad, you should be thankful they're letting us back after what happened- Replied Blaise as he made his way to Draco's desk chair.  
-Whatever, how are you holding up Dray?- Said Pansy turning to the blond boy next to her.  
Draco was a little startled by his friends suddenly going into his room, his mind still in the small cut in his arm; however, he was able to quickly correct his face to one of boredom before replying.  
-Fine, at least Lucius won't be able to bother me from Azkaban-  
Pansy and Blaise both looked at each other a bit worried, they knew this was hard on Draco, but given his personality, they decided not to push the topic too much.  
-Well? Are you just going to stay there or what? I was actually quite occupied- Replied Draco trying to sound as his usual self, although he wasn't sure he had accomplished it.  
-Blaise has an idea for next year, and even though I don't like it and you probably won't either, *sigh* I think we should try it out so we won't be eaten alive-  
The blond Slytherin looked expectant towards Blaise, waiting for him to explain it out.  
-Well, I was just thinking that it wouldn't be a bad idea for us to give out some apologies, and perhaps it would be best if we started with Potter's clan-  
All eyes were on Draco now to see how he would react, but he merely crossed his arms as he stared at the letter, thinking that his friends were probably right, specially because any grudge he felt towards the Golden Trio had been replaced by the guilt of what some of his actions had caused, even if they weren't entirely his fault.  
After a couple minutes of silence, Draco had made his choice, he muttered a small "fine" to his friends and got out of the room for some air, while preparing himself for what the new year at Hogwarts had to offer to the former Slytherin Prince.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my Tumblr, if you want to contact me.


	3. The Ride Back

It was a clear September morning, the train departing to Hogwarts was ready and the platform 9 3/4 was packed with students of different ages, and although it wasn't as loud and cheerful as it had been for years in the past, a slight air of relief and newfound happiness was spreading around. The Golden Trio arrived along Ginny and were already prepared for whatever destiny had for them on this new year of school, so each one of them carried their bags onto the train and found an empty compartment were they settled down and waited for the nearby future. Because Hermione and Ron were sitting together, there was a slight awkward tension when the former couple sat down, specially because Harry and Ginny had already informed their respective best friends of the situation and they were watching them closely in case something were to happen, but nothing ever came.  
As the train left the station, the silence became more comfortable; Ginny was watching out the window, Harry and Ron were asleep and Hermione was reading a book while laying down in her boyfriend's lap. Everyone was calm as the noise outside the compartment started to die, all the students already settled down and enjoying their ride back to Hogwarts, all but the three lonely souls that roamed around the train looking for an empty and quiet place to sit, while wearing gloomy expressions in their faces and dark clothes that matched their feelings: these were the members of the Slytherin trio, who had already gotten all the hate they thought they could handle from most of the students they had crossed paths with. As they reached the end of the train and caught a glimpse of the Savior boy along with his friends, Draco had decided that he wouldn't wait any longer to do the things he thought were right, which in this case was Blaise's idea, he wasn't being controlled by anyone else after all, and so he hurried to stand in front of his friends and open the glass door to the golden compartment.

Ron and Harry were suddenly awoken by the sound of an opening door, and they opened their eyes to find a very shocked and red-faced couple of Slytherins standing before their leader, who was currently wearing a nervous expression as his eyes traveled between the four people staring at him.  
-Granger, Weasleys, Potter- Draco acknowledged without looking at anyone in particular.  
-Bloody hell Malfoy, don't you know how to knock?- Replied Ron in a very annoyed tone.  
Draco ignored this comment while gathering his courage and organizing the thoughts in his head.  
-I wanted to... apologize, for my behavior in the past years; I now understand I was after the wrong ideas and I'm truly and deeply sorry about... *sigh* everything- The young Malfoy spoke looking at his hands and lifting his head only after he had finished his small but honest apology; he heard a couple "sorry" from behind him as he looked at the shocked expressions of the four Gryffindors in front of him.  
He saw Harry and Ginny share a look before nodding in acceptance and mouthing small "thanks"; Hermione shifted in her chair instead, closing her book and putting a string of loose hair behind her ear as she eyed her friends with her mouth slightly open, and as her eyes met Draco's, some words escaped her pink lips.  
-Thanks... We~I sincerely accept your apologies... and offer some back myself...I guess- She said in a soft and sweet voice as her eyes drifted between everyone present, it was obvious she was used to talking for her friends in a motherly kind of way, but the young brunette realized this was a situation in which she couldn't do that, and she was right not to.  
-Yeah? Well I don't, piss off Malfoy- Exclaimed Ron angrily as he stood up, locked the door and pulled the curtain down, leaving three bewildered Slytherins outside and three equally perplexed Gryffindors staring at him.  
-Come on Draco, we're done here- Said Pansy as he pulled Draco into the next compartment, which was thankfully empty.

Harry rubbed his eyes tiredly under his glasses in response of the little show his best friend had just made and in anticipation of the fight everyone could sense was coming. Both girls were glaring at the red-headed boy as he sat back down with his arms crossed. Ginny took a deep breath as she stood up and then walked towards the door.

  
-You're a git Ronald- She said as she turned around and went to find Neville and Luna, not wanting to be near the tension that was rising up between her brother and his girlfriend. Hermione stood up to follow her friend, but was stopped right outside the door by Ron's hand grabbing her wrist.  
-Hermione, wait-  
-What is it Ronald?-  
-What's the matter? Is not like that Death Eater deserves our forgiveness anyways, so I don't get what you're getting all mad about- Said Ron between light amused giggles.  
-Do you think this is funny Ron?! That was completely uncivilized and immature. You just blew up a perfectly good bonding opportunity and-  
-Bonding opportunity?! Do you really want to be friends with a Death Eater?!-  
-Stop calling him that! He is not a Death Eater anymore Ronald, Voldermort is dead and it's obvious Malfoy wants to change. Besides I don't see anything wrong with wanting to be friends with him-  
-You fancy him, don't you?- Said Ron with jealousy starting to burn inside him, how could she be saying such things? Hermione was starting incredulously at her partner; sure, she couldn't deny Malfoy was very attractive and had his charms, he wasn't "the Slytherin Prince" for nothing, but how could her boyfriend say such things?  
-I do not understand at all how you got to that conclusion, but-  
-See?! You didn't deny it and you're even looking for more excuses! So why don't you just leave me and go find him?! I'm sure you'll make a great couple!- Yelled Ron, unable to control himself.  
-Well, maybe I will...- Ron looked at her with a shocked but angry expression before she continued.  
-...leave you..., but believe me Ronald, it has nothing to do with him... at all-

  
Hermione had had enough, she was tired of Ron's exaggerated jealousy and the constant discussions that they held because of it; she thought about all those times he had made her feel bad about her opinions and realized these types of situations made up about 50% of their time together, they could never have real conversations due to their differences; while she wanted to discuss about magical creatures, spells and politics, all he wanted to talk about was Quidditch, and then it would turn into a discussion because they couldn't find a topic in which they both had similar opinions and Ron wasn't one to have healthy debates with; she had made a decision, and she felt this was it, she was letting him go.

  
The young Weasley looked at her with tears in his eyes, he had messed up and he knew it, he tried to move closer but she stepped away.  
-Mione...-  
-Don't, please, just go- Said Hermione, with her eyes closed and tears streaming down her pink cheeks. She took a deep breath and slowly opened her eyes to see Ron walking away... Two hearts shattered, two friends drifting away, two pairs of eyes melting into tears and they hadn't even reached Hogwarts, this was not going to be a great year...


	4. Back To School

Hermione and Ron were now over, and because the walls of the train weren't exactly sound proof, every one at the school now knew that, Draco and his little gang not being the exception. The Slytherin trio were having unexpected reactions to what they had heard; Pansy was feeling bad for Hermione, specially since her sobs were still ringing around the hall; Blaise was considering the possibility that maybe Hermione did, in fact, have feelings for his friend based on the way she had answered and reacted to the accusations; and Draco had a knot in his stomach telling him that it had all been his fault.

In a brave attempt to shake off the feeling of guilt, the blond Slytherin stood up and left his compartment, and at the moment he had stepped out, he saw Hermione in the floor, hugging her legs and crying terribly to her knees in front of her own compartment. Draco took a few steps closer and stood there, not really sure of what to do, and after what felt like an hour, he finally got down to the floor and sat next to her. He didn't really know why he was doing it, if it had been just guilt he could've asked from the door of his compartment if she was okay and then apologize, but a small feeling was starting to cook up in his stomach, playing with the knot, and even though that scared him, he didn't move, after all, she had said earlier that there was a chance of a friendship... Draco waited for a bit and then looked at her, she had stopped sobbing as soon as he sat down, but she hadn't looked up. He waited for her to raise her head so he could give her a reassuring smile and then leave, but she kept her position, so he limited himself to give her a small pat in the head.

  
-I couldn't help to overhear your... small exchange of words Granger-  
-I'm sorry if we disturbed you...- Replied Hermione with a soft voice that almost got lost in the fabric of her sweater, where her face was resting now.  
-No, it's not that, I just wanted to say sorry again, I can't help but feeling like it's my fault-  
-It's not Malfoy, it was just a matter of time- Said the young witch trying not to give many explanations, it was still Malfoy after all.  
-Right... still, sorry... and also thanks... for defending me...-  
Hermione lifted her head and turned a bit to see Draco, his behavior was definitely odd, but it was also comforting, an obvious improvement from the past; she cleaned some tears from her eyes that were trying to communicate gratitude and gave him a reassuring smile, which he slightly returned before standing up and going back to his friends. At that exact moment Harry opened the door and helped her up (he had been waiting for her to calm down a bit), before giving her a big hug, which she happily returned.

•

-Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts, now that all our new students have been sorted, I would like to thank you all for coming back. I know how hard it must be for some of you. However, evil has now been defeated and we must stand tall, continue with our lives and give the best of ourselves in this new era... We will now have a minute of silence for our fallen partners before enjoying the meal that our dear house elves have prepared for us.-  
Professor McGonagall finished her kind words and the whole school was quiet, the food then appeared and they all ate and drank until they were full, and after the dessert it was time for another announcement.  
-Prefects, I would like you to guide the first years to their dormitories, all students up to sixth year can go too, I would like to have some words with the seventh and eight years.-  
After the Great Hall was emptied, McGonagall informed them how this new year was going to work, and after she had explained, everyone left with mixed emotions, for the new year had brought a very special change: Not only did the eight years have to share a common room and take classes with the seventh years, but they were also starting therapy sessions for PTSD.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was a little short, so I'll be adding the next one today as well!


	5. Therapy

Hurried steps rang across the halls of the castle, approaching a big classroom near the astronomy tower, where the first therapy session was taking place. Draco was late.  
Not wanting to draw to much attention to himself, Draco opened the door very slowly and with enough care to stop it from creaking. He stole a quick glance to what was happening inside, and saw that everyone was sitting in a round table, writing furiously into a piece of parchment.  
As he turned around to close the door, his eyes locked momentarily with some hazel colored ones, which followed him until he had taken his place in the empty chair between Blaise and Pansy. Hermione wondered what had made Draco turn up late, but the dark bags under his eyes and his scruffy hair have her some ideas, however, she wanted to wait to have a closer relationship with him and more information before asking him anything that could seem even a little personal.

Silence ruled the small classroom, only the scratches of quill against parchment were audible and there was a slight tension palpable in the air. After a careful observation, Malfoy realized they were alone; only students inside the chambers. Where were all the teachers?

  
-Hey Pansy- Whispered Draco -Where's the teacher in charge?-  
-There isn't one, there are some instructions on top of your parchment-  
Draco looked around before grabbing his parchment, which told him to pour his feelings into it, every thought he had over the events that had taken place earlier that year. The ink was for his eyes only; a way for everyone to express themselves without the worrying of getting in trouble. And so Draco started writing.  
He wasn't so sure about it at first, and wrote simple sentences that didn't express his feelings but rather some obvious facts. But as those facts started becoming more secret, his real feelings started falling on the paper.  
He was writing frenetically now and nothing could stop him; he didn't even notice that everyone was leaving now for breakfast or when Pansy and Blaise had a small discussion as if they should or not alert him of that fact, but Blaise had won and the youngest Malfoy was now the only one in the room. Or so he thought.

-Hey- Said Harry, causing Draco to lift his head from the parchment and realize that there was no one else there but the two of them.  
-Where did everyone go?- Asked Malfoy  
-They went to have breakfast; listen, I wanted to properly accept your apology and offer one myself. You weren't the only one with questionable behavior and I... I think it would be a good idea if we could become friends?- Harry half asked as he watched Draco uncertainly.  
-Oh, right, thanks Potter. Umm, I also believe it would be a good idea, yeah- Replied the blond boy with perplexed eyes but a soft smile on his lips.

  
Neither of them was certain of what to do now, so Harry waved a small goodbye and went to find his friends, leaving Draco by himself.  
After collecting his stuff, he decided that he was going to return to the Slytherin common room and maybe take a small nap before his next lesson, he wasn't very hungry after all and had some thinking to do, as he wasn't sure how a friendship with two thirds of the golden trio would play out, specially since he wasn't certain that his friends would be fine with the idea and Ron was still being a git, but those were things he could figure out after he woke up.

•

Up in the Great Hall, not everyone's mood was much better. Many of the oldest students had gloomy expressions because of the memories unburied in therapy, while the others could just feel it in the air. Harry took everyone's distraction to go unseen to the Gryffindor table, where his friends were already eating.

-Hey mate, where were you?- Asked Ron  
-Sorry, I had left my quill in the classroom- Replied Harry to Ron before turning to Ginny.  
-Have you seen Hermione?-  
-She's sitting over there with Seamus and Dean- Replied Ginny after giving him a small hug; they had broken up, but since they had agreed on a friendship, things weren't too awkward.  
Harry, smiled at her and sat down, Hermione could take care of herself and she seemed to be slightly happier than before, giggling and talking with the two boys, that were curiously sitting together closer than ever.


	6. Paired Up

After breakfast everyone went to their first classes, and the Slytherins were going to be sharing Herbology with the Gryffindors. As all of the seventh and eighth years were walking there, the social and personal changes brought by the war could easily be seen: everyone had a little less spring in their step, some mixed-houses groups had formed, Hermione was closer to Neville and Ginny but avoiding Ron, who was walking a little behind them and stealing a few quick glances to his ex-girlfriend every now and then, the same action that was happening between Seamus and Dean, who were walking together in a comfortable silence.

Harry was observing everything from behind the group; he liked walking on his own and he didn't want to take sides on the whole fight between his two best friends, he was going to need to talk about that with them later. Another thing that he noticed, or rather didn't, was Malfoy's signature platinum blond hair, which was really hard to miss, and so its absence was equally as noticeable. He thought about asking Blaise and Pansy about him, but he wasn't sure if he was in 'asking about Draco' terms with them; also, he didn't want to seem weird asking questions about a guy he was just going to start being friends with, after being enemies for so long. Luckily for him, they were already getting to the greenhouses, so he didn't have much time to dwell on it.

Going in the greenhouses was like going through a passage to another universe; there were plants everywhere, of all colors and shapes, odors and sounds. The whole place had changed a lot since Harry's first lesson there, and it resembled now more a jungle rather than a classroom.

The classes usually took place in the middle of everything, where about seventeen double-desks were placed in form of a crescent moon facing a larger desk that belonged to Professor Sprout; from there she could easily watch over her students and help them in case they were struggling with anything. There was also a blackboard behind her from which the students could read the instructions for the class.

The dynamics of the class required the students to work in couples, which they typically chose by themselves; today however, Professor Sprout wanted to mix things up a bit by pairing students from different houses, taking into account personalities that would work well together; when the students arrived, she informed them of how the class would work that day and left the instructions on how to domesticate their Venomous Tentaculae, which they had learned how to handle back in sixth year.

The pairings went like this for the Golden and the Slytherin trios: Harry was working with Draco, Hermione was working with Pansy, Ron was working with Theodore Nott and Blaise was working with Ginny. None of them were pleased, but the only one complaining was Ron because he still didn't like or trust the Slytherins. However, this was not the only problem: the class had already started and Draco was nowhere to be seen.

As the class developed there was bickering and scolding all over the classroom.

-Parkinson, you're supposed to pet it, not break it!-

-Yes well Granger, maybe if your lion hair wasn't in the way I could actually see what I'm doing!-

-Weasley, that's not the mouth-

-Shut up Nott-

-Zabini, hurry up with that twig or I'll let go of the spikes-

-Wow, easy there Weaslette, I'm almost done-

The first few minutes in the classroom were really a chaos because that's when the plants were more feisty, but eventually everything started settling down, except for Harry's plant, which he hadn't been able to tame due to the lack of a partner. The golden boy was currently trying to feed a treat to his Venomous Tentacula, but the mouth was in the middle of all the spikes and he couldn't handle everything by himself. Malfoy was so gonna get in trouble. But then, just as a spiky twig was about to hit Harry's face, something stopped it.

-Nice timing Malfoy, but next time you could just be here on time- Said Potter, he was furious.

-Whatever Potter, just give me the treat- Answered Draco, who was actually feeling kind of embarrassed, but couldn't just drop his mask.

When the class was over, all the plants had been successfully tamed, for Professor Sprout had made some really good pairings. Something else that had come out of this activity were some seeds of friendship; it was hard to domesticate a Venomous Tentacula and the tamers had to work together to achieve it, and since the Slytherins had already apologized, there was no hatred between the students when they got out of the greenhouses.

As the Slytherins got together to discuss the events of the class and the absence of Draco for all the first half of it, they started discussing their experiences when working with the Gryffindors and realized that they had actually had a very good time; Pansy had gotten her highest grade yet in herbology and had learned some other facts that had come out in some casual conversations with Hermione, Blaise had ended up flirting at Ginny and bothering her for "looking cute when she was angry" and Draco had found out that Harry was actually a pretty cool person to work with, they had a very nice connection that allowed them to catch up with the other students despite the lost time, and even though Draco denied it, it was there and it was only gonna grow bigger.


	7. Socializing

-Hey Granger! Wait up!- Called Pansy as she saw Hermione's bushy hair walking towards the eight year's dorms after another successful herbology class a couple weeks later; they had gone through several of those and were now getting used to each other.

-Oh, hello Parkinson, what's the matter?-

-I just realized I haven't thanked you for all the help you've given me in herbology.-

-Well, we're partners, it's what we're supposed to do.-

-Yeah, but you did more than most partners do and I've never gotten such high grades! So thank you, really...-

Hermione looked at Pansy in the eyes, smiled and gave her a small nod before turning away and leaving for the tower, without noticing she had let the Slytherin girl staring after her.

*

-I'm telling you Pans, you are totally crushing on Granger now- Said Blaise as they had lunch that same afternoon.

-I'm not! We've only ever talked in herbology class and we're just now starting to be civil with one another. And you're one to talk, haven't you been flirting with Weaslette since day one?-

-Don't turn it to me girl, I'm a flirter by default. However, I do wanna know how you can explain that we found you staring after her earlier? Besides, I know for a fact that you two have also socialized in therapy, yeah, don't think we didn't see you the other day laughing together, am I right mate?- Replied Blaise before turning to Draco.

But Draco wasn't paying much attention, for his gaze was fixed upon the Gryffindor table and his thoughts were dwelling in the small conversations he had had with the golden boy in both therapy and class. Never in a million years would he have thought to have decent conversations with The Harry Potter, but now it seemed like they had gone through enough situations to actually become friends: saving each others lives, apologizing, domesticating a Venomous Tentacula, small talk nearly every day...

-Hey! Draco, you there?- Asked Blaise as he waved his hands in front of the blonde's face and tried to see what had him all disconnected to reality; as Zabini found his answer, a small idea found its way into his head.

-How about we join the Gryffindors for lunch?-

Pansy choked on her food. Draco spilled apple juice all over his white shirt. Blaise drew the attention of nearly everyone in the almost deserted Great Hall with his loud laugh. Ginny made Hermione blush with a comment about how Draco's wet shirt detailed his very impressive abs. Harry smiled slightly at Draco's amused face; it made him look very cute even if that thought wasn't allowed in the golden boy's head.

-Hahaha, I knew you'd love my idea- Said Blaise as he stood up, grabbed the other two Slytherins by their robes and dragged them to the Gryffindor table.

There were currently very few people in the Great Hall, mostly first years and teachers, and so Blaise knew that they wouldn't cause any disturbance if they decided to switch tables, specially because at regular meals students weren't required to sit with their house-mates, and so, many mixed groups could be seen; like Neville and Luna eating together or Ron sitting with a group of Hufflepuffs.

-Oh no, the Slytherins are coming- Said Ginny in a slightly annoyed tone as she saw the silver trio approaching.

-Yeah, with Zabini at the front, have you guys gone official yet? Or are you just gonna flirt forever?- Joked Hermione.

-I do not flirt with Blaise Zabini!- Replied Ginny clearly annoyed now.

-That's sadly true, I generally end up flirting at her- Commented Blaise when he reached them as he shot a wink at Ginny and added with a smirk -How you doin' Weaslette?-

-What are you guys doing here?- Asked Hermione as she laughed at Ginny's eye-roll.

-I just thought we all could do some socializing since we're already in good terms, so I brought these two- Said Blaise as they all sat down in front of Ginny, Hermione and Harry, who had moved closer to see what was happening.

Ron, who had been spying from the Hufflepuff table, was completely surprised to see the developing events. He couldn't believe that his best friends and sister were socializing with their sworn enemies. And then something occurred to him.

Maybe they _had_ changed, maybe they _were_ telling the truth and had actually meant their apologies. Maybe he _had_ acted like a total jerk and had screwed things up. Maybe that's why he had lost Hermione. He knew that he wasn't gonna win her back and now knew that she deserved better, but he could at least try to win back his best friend; the one that had taught him how to properly levitate an object, corrected his homework and helped him become a better person. He also missed Harry, they hadn't been able to hang out properly because of the whole trouble.

Ron was sure as hell that he wasn't going to go making friends with the Slytherins, but the least he could do was accept their apologies and offer some back himself while getting back his two best friends in the process. So he excused himself from the Hufflepuffs and went to execute his plan.

As he approached the table he could get little hints of their conversation, which was currently about stuff that had happened in herbology; they all seemed to be having a good time and they were even laughing when he reached them.

-Hey...- Said Ron as he stood behind Harry and Ginny.

-Hey Ron, what's up?- Replied Ginny casually as everyone turned to look at the ginger boy standing up. None of them were very comfortable having him there, but they were all curious as to what he was doing there. Harry was afraid that he might start another fight, but he was pleasantly surprised when he realized what his friend was actually doing.

-I wanted to apologize... to all of you- Said Ron as he gestured to the Slytherins, before turning to Hermione. -And ask Hermione to please forgive me for acting like a jerk.-

-I can forgive you Ron, but don't think for a second that I'm going to take you back- Replied Hermione with a little bit of anger brought up from the memories of their past relationship.

-I know, I know, but I really miss my two best friends- Concluded Ron as he looked from the floor to Hermione and then to Harry

-Well, this has been very sweet and all, but we have a conversation to finish, sit down Weasley- Said Blaise before finishing his story on how he had accidentally made the Venomous Tentacula fall in love with him. And even though Ron was obviously a bit uncomfortable around the Slytherins, they all had a nice afternoon sharing stories. It was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.


	8. Draco

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains mentions of self-harm that could be triggering, don't get any ideas.

Therapy was a great thing for most students because it allowed them to deal with their war-related traumas, death of loved ones and regrets in a healthy way. For most students it was helping a lot, as they were starting to overcome their lost stares and nightmares, while opening up and regaining the light in their eyes. But Draco Malfoy was not "most students"; at least not in his head.

Draco had gone through far worse than most students because, on top of losing people he cared about and fighting in a war at seventeen years old, he had been forced to fight on the wrong side, he had had Lord Voldemort living in his own house and had gone through several cruciatus curses for over a year. He had been forced to let death eaters into Hogwarts and to kill Dumbledore. Even if he hadn't actually gone through the last one, the guilt was still there. The feeling that everything had happened because of him was there. It never occurred to him that if he hadn't obeyed those orders, his family would be now dead and the death eaters would have found a more violent way into the castle. In fact no one had ever thought of that, and so Draco Malfoy now also had to deal with the death glares, hexes and insults he received from most students in the school.

Draco was very strong though. He wouldn't drop his mask for anything or anyone. When he was feeling particularly sensitive or annoyed he would just return the glares, hexes and insults instead of ignoring and blocking them; but no one had ever seen Draco Malfoy even flinch when being the recipient of the bullying he so often perpetuated back in his pre-nightmare days. Besides, his usually cold self managed to throw off anyone who could think that he might actually have feelings and tricked them into thinking that he really didn't care about anything or anyone.

This helped him shut down any suspicions about him being broken inside and allowed him to have mental breakdowns in his silence-charmed bed at nights and start the habit of self-harming.

Every day after therapy, when his emotions where bubbling in a sea of depression inside him, Draco Malfoy would go into the bathroom to take a shower; he took a very long time, but his roommates knew better that to bother him or asking him about it, they just went to another one if they really needed it and took their showers before therapy, because even if Draco was feeling a lot of sadness and regret, he was also feeling anger and pure rage that would often show in his face when he was annoyed, thus making him look more threatening and intimidating than ever before.

Inside the bathroom, after locking the door and putting up enough silencing charms to block the sound of a rock concert, Draco would drop to his knees and cry; then he would sit with his back laying on the wall and cry some more before forcing himself to calm down; after that, he would pick up his wand take off his shirt, bringing his red puffy eyes to his dark mark that held several scars across, some deeper than others, old and recent, long and a bunch of short ones. Scars that reflected how he felt and told different stories.

One could identify which scars had been made the day they wrote about the death of Dumbledore in therapy and which ones had appeared when they discussed everything good they had done in the war.

Draco had been completely blank that day. He couldn't even use the easy way out that some students used when they had been to scared to fight: "I supported the right side". Most of the students that gave that answer did it while glaring at the Slytherins, the rest of them were Slytherins. Because, against what many people may think, Slytherin is not a house for the evil and traitors; but for the cunning and ambitious, and so it's pretty obvious that many Slytherins fought for the school they grew up in. Sure, there might have been a couple of rotten apples, but be sure that most of the Slytherins fighting against Hogwarts did it because they were forced to, just like Draco Malfoy.

But he couldn't find anything good in that, he didn't think that having the heart in the right place made any difference; he had completely forgotten about how he had helped Harry back in the Malfoy Manor because for him it had been nothing.

But Harry remembered, and he knew that they wouldn't have made it out of there alive if it hadn't been for that small act of goodness; so he spoke up when it was Draco's turn to speak and the silence had become deafening.

-Malfoy saved our lives in the Malfoy Manor when we went Horcrux hunting- Said Harry with Hermione and even Ron backing him up.

But Draco didn't say anything, he just kept his emotionless face and lowered his head briefly in a small nod. Then he got to his bathroom and repeated his small routine, that ended with him standing underneath the cold water, watching his blood contrasting against the white tiles of the shower floor while putting on fresh bandages that would stop the bleeding and quickly heal the cuts before lunch, leaving nothing but a fading scar over the unchangeable tattoo.

Today they had had another session of writing down their feelings, and these annoyed Draco the most because his mind usually went berserk with all of the events of the war. Nothing he heard in therapy made him feel any better about himself, but rather just opened old wounds and stopped them from closing.

But today it had been different.

Today, when it was time to start writing, his mind took a different path and started remembering lunch with the Gryffindors the day before. They had pumpkin pasta with bat wings. Blaise had spilled his entire plate of pasta on himself when one of his wings grew a body and the newborn bat went flying away, courtesy of Pansy showing off her magical abilities to Hermione. Everyone had laughed so hard, even Ron had cracked a little smile.

It had become their thing to sit together to have lunch and sometimes breakfast when the Great Hall was mostly deserted. Sometimes Neville and Luna joined them and they would have a laugh at some crazy story or conspiracy that Luna read off the Quibbler. They always had a good time.

Draco thought about all this when he got to his bathroom. He didn't start crying right away, but rather smiled a bit at the thought of his new friendship. Ever since it started he had felt a little bit better, he laughed more often and he received less hate from the student body thanks to Harry, who had shared the word of Draco's heroic act.

And so, Draco Malfoy made a vow, that he would not be hurting himself again; mostly because he thought that his friends would abandon him if they found out that he wasn't what he showed everyone and that he had been lying to them, but also because he didn't want them to worry about him. He didn't want to think of it this way, but he needed their friendship. It was good for him.

He knew that he wasn't going to be able to fulfill his new promise if he kept going to therapy, it was too painful, and so he decided to stop going altogether, hoping that nobody would notice. But when someone has a crush on another person, even if they don't know about it yet or won't admit it, the are bound to notice their crush's absence, and this was the case of Draco Malfoy's secret admirer.


	9. Hermione's Crush

Hermione Granger was the brightest witch of her age, no one had any doubts about that. But as she had once stated, it was all books and cleverness, because when it came to more personal aspects of life such as social norms or love, she was lost.

It was true that she had gained much more sensibility throughout the years, but she still found herself confused and speechless when she found out she had a crush on someone. She knew she wouldn't find answers that didn't have to do with being under a love spell on books (she had looked) and she couldn't really have learned from experience since she had only experimented similar feelings with two other boys: Viktor Krum and Ron Weasley.

With Viktor it hadn't really been that hard because she had known from the beginning that it was only physical attraction she felt, since the boy hadn't even picked up a book since she had met him; and it had taken her about five years to figure out how she felt about Ron, with another whole year before actually doing something about it. There was no where in hell that she was going to wait that long to figure out how she felt about this new romance possibility. What was anyone supposed to do when presented with a guy that not only was extremely good looking, well-mannered and mysterious, but that also had that sweet-tooth for knowledge that she valued so much?

He would have been number one in almost every class he took if it hadn't been for her, which meant that he either really liked to study or was just that smart; and even if she suspected it was the latter, she definitely was not going to be very disappointed if she found out it was the first one. She had seen several books in his backpack, maybe there were the ones of his classes? But no, because Hermione owned every single textbook required for Hogwarts and only about half of them looked like the ones she'd seen in in the floor the day that Draco accidentally dropped his possessions after therapy; she thought she recognized a couple of them, but the only thing she knew for sure was that those were not textbooks. Draco Malfoy surely read for pleasure.

Yes, she might have been letting her eyes linger on his a little more than necessary when they were talking on lunch, and had maybe found herself checking him out when she thought he wasn't looking while analyzing many facts about him like the incident of the books, the way he addressed the professors with just the exact amount of arrogance to make him look smart yet still polite or the way he dressed when they were out of class like he was going to a magazine photoshoot, but she still needed concrete proof of her feelings.

Call it fear or stubbornness, but Hermione Granger did not have a crush on Draco Malfoy, not until she could prove it. She was going to run tests, take notes, read books and analyze everything until she was completely sure of how she felt before doing anything about it. But she needed to get some help first from someone that had had some experience on the boyfriend department and with whom she felt comfortable enough to discuss her love-life. Someone she trusted.

-Ginny! Can I ask you something?- Asked Hermione once they had gotten to the empty Gryffindor dorm, which they shared with all the Gryffindor girls from both seventh and eighth year.

-You know you can Mione, what's up?-

-How do you know when you have a crush on someone?- Replied Hermione as fast as she could before backing out while looking everywhere but her friend.

-Oh my Merlin, I knew it! Is he from another house? Is he a Ravenclaw? Agh, of course you would have a thing for nerds! Is he even a he? Oh my Merlin, it's Lisa Turpin isn't she? I knew there was something going on that day at the library. But didn't she have a thing going on with Michael Corner? Dear Merlin Hermione! I never thought you'd steal someone else's girlfriend! I'm so proud of you!- Exclaimed Ginny with the speed of a Firebolt and the excitement of a Cheering Charm.

-Ginny calm down! There's nothing to be proud of, I just asked you a question- Replied Hermione with a giggle.

-Yes, but you wouldn't have asked it if you didn't already knew the answer, even if you are too stubborn to admit it even to yourself- Said Ginny as she crossed her arms and her mouth twitched into a knowing smirk.

Hermione knew Ginny was right, if she didn't think that she was crushing on Malfoy, she probably would have let go of the topic weeks ago. Her cheeks became the deepest crimson color at the realization of her feelings and all the implications these would have. Was she ready to tell Ginny who all the fuzz was about? She had to, Ginny was never gonna let her go without a proper answer.

-Ok, come, sit with me, let's start over. Tell me about it.- Said Ginny as a reply for the silence and red cheeks from Hermione.

-Well, to answer your questions; yes, he is from another house; no, he's certainly not a Ravenclaw and yes, he is most definitely a he, so there's no need to bring Lisa Turpin into the conversation, that day I was just asking for a book she had that I needed.- Answered Hermione, stalling as much as possible to prepare herself to say the name of her crush out loud for the first time.

-Ok, who is it then?-

-Well, he's a Slytherin...- Said Hermione as calmly as she could, while her cheeks kept gaining color.

-Oh. My. Merlin. It's Draco Malfoy, isn't it?- Replied Ginny as everything clicked into place. She took Hermione's impossibly red cheeks and nervous look as a positive answer.

-Hermione, this is huge! Are you gonna tell him? Nevermind, of course you are, I'm in charge of your love life now; we have to make a plan.-

-A plan? Whatever for?-

-Well to get you close to him of course! Here's what we're going to do...-


End file.
